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A539's are the control tyre for locost series. They need correctly cycling to get the best out of them. There's certainly far better tyres out there and A539's on a higher powered seven would be fair at best in my opinion.

Front bar off would have sent the mechanical balance rearward (roll stiffness distribution) and been partly the source of your instability.

A usual wet setup would take the rear anti-roll bar off, or both assuming the rear is stiffer than the front. You sort of had the right idea as you were trying to go softer overall (the dampers were a good move) but your apex balance would have been poor.

I've driven a539s in the wet, and cold, and there not THAT bad. However a tyre of a softer compound will always be better, as they come in at a lower temperature. The wet road tends to cool the tyre surface making it hard to get hard compound tyres into their work range (hard road tyres = a539s). I'm sure Steve felt that in the Locosts under wet conditions!

Does the caterham have a manual or source of engineering data? I'd be interested in knowing how much of a step in balance that bar disconnect was. I'm happy to share the results on here

Don't have a rear arb, it is live axle on the rear.
I will try and get hold of westfield and see if any info is forthcoming. I will also ask on the wscc forum to see if anyone there got that sort of info.

I was racing at oulton with a guy that I have been comfortably faster than in the dry, even in the wet pre crash at cadwell. He disconnected his arb on his caterham for the qualifying in the open and was WAY faster than me.
I personally feel more comfortable just adjusting to the loosest setting on it, rather than completely disconnecting. Still couldn't say that I had any confidence in the 539's, they really gave my sphincter a work out. It is weird as I have used them before on a mini and had no issues at all. Perhaps it is the set up/style of car. Perhaps I needed to warm them up more? But as they are control tyre in locosts, can't understand it. Or perhaps it is just my driving style?